Tuesday, March 12, 2013

37 Characteristics of Dyslexia

  • Appears bright, highly intelligent, and articulate but unable to read, write, or spell at grade level.
  • Labelled lazy, dumb, careless, immature, "not trying hard enough," or "behavior problem."
  • Isn't "behind enough" or "bad enough" to be helped in the school setting.
  • High in IQ, yet may not test well academically; tests well orally, but not written.
  • Feels dumb; has poor self-esteem; hides or covers up weaknesses with ingenious compensatory strategies; easily frustrated and emotional about school reading or testing.
  • Talented in art, drama, music, sports, mechanics, story-telling, sales, business, designing, building, or engineering.
  • Seems to "Zone out" or daydream often; gets lost easily or loses track of time.
  • Difficulty sustaining attention; seems "hyper" or "daydreamer."
  • Learns best through hands-on experience, demonstrations, experimentation, observation, and visual aids.

Vision, Reading, and Spelling

  • Complains of dizziness, headaches or stomach aches while reading.
  • Confused by letters, numbers, words, sequences, or verbal explanations.
  • Reading or writing shows repetitions, additions, transpositions, omissions, substitutions, and reversals in letters, numbers and/or words.
  • Complains of feeling or seeing non-existent movement while reading, writing, or copying.
  • Seems to have difficulty with vision, yet eye exams don't reveal a problem.
  • Extremely keen sighted and observant, or lacks depth perception and peripheral vision.
  • Reads and rereads with little comprehension.
  • Spells phonetically and inconsistently.

Hearing and Speech

  • Has extended hearing; hears things not said or apparent to others; easily distracted by sounds.
  • Difficulty putting thoughts into words; speaks in halting phrases; leaves sentences incomplete; stutters under stress; mispronounces long words, or transposes phrases, words, and syllables when speaking.

Writing and Motor Skills

  • Trouble with writing or copying; pencil grip is unusual; handwriting varies or is illegible.
  • Clumsy, uncoordinated, poor at ball or team sports; difficulties with fine and/or gross motor skills and tasks; prone to motion-sickness.
  • Can be ambidextrous, and often confuses left/right, over/under.

Math and Time Management
  • Has difficulty telling time, managing time, learning sequenced information or tasks, or being on time.
  • Computing math shows dependence on finger counting and other tricks; knows answers, but can't do it on paper.
  • Can count, but has difficulty counting objects and dealing with money.
  • Can do arithmetic, but fails word problems; cannot grasp algebra or higher math.

Memory and Cognition

  • Excellent long-term memory for experiences, locations, and faces.
  • Poor memory for sequences, facts and information that has not been experienced.
  • Thinks primarily with images and feeling, not sounds or words (little internal dialogue).

Behavior, Health, Development and Personality

  • Extremely disorderly or compulsively orderly.
  • Can be class clown, trouble-maker, or too quiet.
  • Had unusually early or late developmental stages (talking, crawling, walking, tying shoes).
  • Prone to ear infections; sensitive to foods, additives, and chemical products.
  • Can be an extra deep or light sleeper; bedwetting beyond appropriate age.
  • Unusually high or low tolerance for pain.
  • Strong sense of justice; emotionally sensitive; strives for perfection.
  • Mistakes and symptoms increase dramatically with confusion, time pressure, emotional stress, or poor health.
            
          

              (© 1992 by Ronald D. Davis.)

Tuesday, March 5, 2013

Dyslexia - Why do MY Children Have It?

     Let me start out by saying that out of our 9 children, 3...possibly 4, of our children have dyslexia.  This did not stop our 3rd oldest daughter from going to college where they gave her help for what they call her "disability," nor did it stop her from becoming a Certified Nurses Assistant, a Photographer, as well as a wife & mother.  As well, we will not let it stop our younger children who struggle with it on a daily basis, from doing what they want to do too.

What is dyslexia?     Dyslexia is a specific developmental disability that alters the way the brain processes written material.  According to The International Dyslexia Association (IDA), dyslexia is characterized by difficulties with accurate and/or fluent word recognition and by poor spelling and decoding abilities.  Studies show that individuals with dyslexia process information in a different area of the brain than do non-dyslexics.

     There is no single pattern of difficulty that affects every dyslexic person.  Dyslexia can cause a variety of issues.  I found a wonderful checklist
here called 37 Common Characteristics of Dyslexia.   


What causes dyslexia?
     Dyslexia is thought to be an inherited condition. It may be genetic, but how and if it comes to be varies considerably from individual to individual. Sometimes dyslexia can be attributed to a wide range of environmental factors, like birth trauma, problems during pregnancy, brain injuries, infections and toxins. However, although considerable progress has been made, the exact mechanism that causes genes to contribute to the multi-faceted dyslexic condition is still unknown. Research shows dyslexia affects about 10% of the population.

Is there a cure for dyslexia?
     According to the Mayo Clinic website, there is no cure for dyslexia. It's a lifelong condition caused by inherited traits that affect how your brain works. However, most children with dyslexia can succeed in school with tutoring or a specialized education program. Emotional support also plays an important role.


      Dyslexia is a medical diagnosis. Therefore, public schools don't test for it and often don't have programs to address it.
             

                  Thank you to Melissa's research at:
         http://reflectionsfromdrywoodcreek.blogspot.com

Monday, March 4, 2013

A Place of My Own

     Have you ever  wished you had somewhere to go that is peaceful, quiet, where you could read a whole paragraph in a book if you wanted, or think without being interrupted, or even just pray outloud and totally keeping your eyes on Him, our precious Lord???
     Don't get me wrong...I LOVE kids and babies!!  My own, our soon-to-be 10th grandbaby, our foster kids through the years...  Flat out, I love kids!!  All I ever wanted to be was a wife and mother from the time I was in about 2nd grade.  My first babysitting job was for my 4th grade teacher every day after school so that she could go to her second job.  I took her son to Cub Scout Meetings, made him supper and had him ready for bed when she got home.
     Now fast forward...I am sad to say, I am now 47 and now I can concentrate a little less on everyone else (though we still have 4 children in the nest and one grandbaby we are raising), and ask myself, "What do I, Kelly, want?"  Well, I wanted a room I can go to, my own little hideout if you will," and something I can go to, enjoy, and yet still be able to see what is going on, and be able to supervise the kids still at home.  So, my husband turned one of our bedrooms into a "my room."  Yes, my room for my kittens and I.  I have a radio, TV, my Bible, a notebook, and 'pretty' things in there.  But to be able to still see and supervise what is going on, I needed something I could see through, but still not have all the noise.  So, I got the idea of an all glass screen door!  Yes, it might seem corny, but it works perfectly!!  My hubby did a great job!!



 

Saturday, March 2, 2013

Persian Beauties

     Is there a difference between a regular house cat vs. a Persian??  The answer is...YES!
     Don't get me wrong, cats have been part of most of my life since I was a little kid in maybe 2nd or 3rd grade.  I love the cats I have had!  They have been some great cats!  However, I was blessed to meet a lady with a cattery who breeds Persians. 
     Persians have a long flowing coat with luxurious full, soft wooly undercoat hairs with longer coarser guard hairs and a chunky body which is often referred to as 'cobby.'  Their legs are thick and stocky.  Persians typically have round eyes set in a sweet round flat face. 
     Persians are gentle (not hyper), quiet cats.  They are calm and undemanding and can be very affectionate.  They are very placid and unlikely to scratch anyone.  Because of the Persian's serene nature they usually get along with other pets, and are great with children.  They are not noisy, nor demanding, and can give their owners much love and devotion.  If you want a loveable, adorable Persian kitten
please email Sharon at; oldetyme3@q.com
                                                                         



                                              Snickers


Butterscotch
                                             Sasha
    

Friday, March 1, 2013

Hermit Crab Cramped Quarters

What an awesome home school experience we had yesterday!!  Our youngest son at home (age 11),
decided that he wanted a Hermit Crab after seeing his nephews.  So we researched Hermit Crabs, and
and he used his savings to buy one.  We actually got to watch as his crab felt around until he found the new, bigger shell he wanted, and saw him move in to his new shell!!  It's rather ugly out of it's shell, but a fascinating miracle of God!

Designer Kennels - Pomapoos, Toy Poodles & Rat Terriers

Our good friends, Jean & Brian have redesigned their website. They are the ones who got me into the business and taught me soooooo much! The sell toy poodles, pomapoos, and rat terriers. They are excellent dog breeders if you want a wonderful dog!! Check out their website!!

"Hi everyone,
We have our new website set up and running... still adding stuff. Here it is: www.designerkennel.com"